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The Police would like to alert members of the public to remain vigilant against scammers who deceive victims into authorising them access to their WhatsApp accounts.

In such cases, the scammers would attempt to log into the victims’ WhatsApp accounts by entering their mobile numbers and requesting for a WhatsApp verification one-time password (OTP). This would trigger an SMS containing the OTP to be sent to the victims. The victims would thereafter receive WhatsApp messages from known contacts whose WhatsApp accounts have already been compromised. The victims would be asked to provide the OTP under the pretext that the code was actually intended for the known contacts but had been mistakenly sent to them. Once provided, scammers would be able to access the victims’ WhatsApp accounts and log the victims out. The scammers then enact the same ruse with the victims’ contacts. The victims would realise that their WhatsApp accounts have been compromised when they are logged out of their accounts or when their contacts inform them of the unusual OTP requests. 

While no losses have been reported so far, the Police would like to remind members of the public never to provide sensitive information such as OTPs to anyone. To secure their WhatsApp accounts, members of the public should remove unknown devices linked to their WhatsApp accounts by going to ‘Settings’ > ‘Linked Devices’. Members of the public should also enable the ‘Two-Step Verification’ feature on their WhatsApp accounts by going to ‘Settings’ > ‘Account’ > ‘Two-step verification’ > ‘Enable’. 

Members of the public are strongly advised to adopt the following precautionary measures: 

1. ADD - ScamShield app to block out scam calls and filter out scam SMSes. Set up security features on WhatsApp. For information on security features on WhatsApp, visit https://www.whatsapp.com/security.
   
   
2. CHECK - scam signs with official sources such as the ScamShield app. Beware of unusual requests received over WhatsApp. Call and check with the 24/7 ScamShield Helpline at 1799.
   
   
3. TELL - authorities, family, and friends if or when you encounter scams. If you suspect that you have fallen victim to a scam, call your bank immediately to report and block any fraudulent transactions as well as make a police report.

For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamshield.gov.sg. Fighting scams is a community effort. Together, we can ACT Against Scams to safeguard our community!

Annex

Screenshot of a conversation between a scammer and a victim